Pokeno & Polish Pottery

A couple weeks back, I was invited to a Pokeno girl's night at my friend, Robin's, house! I had NO idea what Pokeno was, but as long as it involved laughter, adult interaction and alcoholic beverages, I was in!!!

A little background for you - Pokeno is a game that was manufactured by the United States Playing Card Company, and is a combo of Poker and Keno - very similar to the game Bingo in several aspects.  We each had a card and a handful of marker chips.

As the caller flips over a card from the deck of cards, those that have that card on his/her Pokeno card, would mark it - see, very similar to Bingo! When you cover a row of cards on your Pokeno card, you call out Pokeno!!!

As the winner of the Pokeno round, you got to pick a present from the pile (we all brought a small, fall themed gift).  The more you win, the more you collect - you don't need to pass yours to someone else!  As you got a gift, you also opened it up for others to start plotting out what gifts they were going to steal from you in Round 2.

At the end of the first round, I had this beauty!!! My first piece of Polish pottery! Oh and a bottle of vodka (because vodka is good in the fall too)!  :)

I was sure to announce to everyone that this was my very first piece of Polish pottery and I was so happy to bring it home with me! He he! My trick did not work...it was quickly snatched up by the first winner in Round 2.

After winning a game in the second round, I then got this lovely serving dish - my "second" piece of pottery!

It too was also snatched away rather quickly and I was left empty handed - it sure was fun owning some Polish pottery for a quick little bit! Ha! Even though I was going home empty handed, the night was a ton of fun and I met some wonderful ladies! As we were getting ready to leave, Liz, who I had met for the first time that night, gifted me the bread pan back and said she really wanted me to have it as my first piece of pottery! How sweet!!!

That's some focused concentration!

Robin happened to need some pottery the following week, so I tagged along and went to my first Polish pottery shop - Kim's! Can you believe how many pieces are crammed into this tiny little shop!!! The pieces were stunning!

Since we were still in purge mode from our second shipment, I knew Andy would have some no-so-kind words to say if I brought home a couple of platters - he already thinks we had WAY too many! But I had to get something though - right!?! My first time Polish pottery shopping and come home empty handed - no way! SO I got this small little bowl! Isn't it beautiful!!!

Here are some fun facts on Polish pottery:

• Most Polish pottery has a white background and either dark blue stamping as the pattern or a dark blue rim.  Dark blue is the most popular color.  Other colors include green, yellow, brown and sometimes red or purple motifs.
• Ceramics has been a part of the city of Bolesławiec, Poland for an extremely long time - as early as the 14th century.
• It is often referred to as Boleslawiec pottery.  This means that it is stamped with a special seal, indicating its authenticity.  Here are samples of the stamps:

• The pottery can be put in the microwave, oven and dishwasher - yes please!
• One of the most popular shapes is the eye of the peacock feather.  Other common motifs are dots, speckles, floral patterns and triangles.

Eye of the peacock design

I do plan to collect many more pieces while we are in Poland - I am thinking appetizer plates (Robin's were amazing!), a couple bowls, serving platters and Christmas trees!!! 

Special thanks again to Liz! I made my Aunt Karen's banana bread yesterday! Yum!!